Gearing.



I. PACKARD.

GEARING.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 16. 1915.

Patented July 4, 1916.

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IRA LEwrs PACKARD, or FRANKFORT, KANSAS.

GEARING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 4., 1916;

Application filed November 16, 1915. Serial No. 61,806.

1 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IRA LEWIS PACKARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Frankfort, in the county of Marshall and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gearing; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertainstomake and use the same.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements in gearing, and my object is to provide a plurality of gears of different sizes adapted to cooperate with a feedplate of the planter. I

A further object is to provide means for shifting said gears to bring any one of the same in engagement with the feed plate. And a further object is to provide means for holding the gears in their shifted position.

Other objects and advantages, will be hereinafter set forth and more particularly pointed out in the accompanying specification.

In the accompanying drawings which are made a part of this application, Figure 1 is a bottom plan view of a grain containing box, showing my improved attachment applied thereto. Fig. 2 is an edge elevation thereof in inverted position. Fig. 3 is an elevation of a rack employed in connection with the gear shifting mechanism. Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the grain containing box, showing a modified form of bearing for the gear carrying shaft,- and Fig. 5 is a sectional view thereof.

Referring to the drawings in which similar reference characters designate I corresponding parts throughout the several views, 1 indicates a ring member, such as is commonly used for attaching the grain containing .hopper or box 2 to a planter frame, 3 indicates a guide member and 4 indicates a feedplate, such as is commonly used in planters of this class, said feed plates having a pluralityof'openings 5 to receive grain from the hopper, andwhen the plate 4 is rotated, the openings 5 are successively brought into registration with a discharge pipe 6 carried by the ring member 1 from whence it descends into the ground in the usual manner.

The under face of the feed plate 4 is provided with a circular rack 7 with which are adapted to engage any one of gears 8, 9,

10 or 11 mounted upon a driving shaft 12, and as sa1d gears gradually increase in size, the travel of the feed plate 4 will be accordingly increased or decreased depending upon the size of the gear engaged with therack.

The driving shaft 12 is rotated in any suitable manner and as it is necessaryto move one end of the shaft toward or from the feed plate 4 to engage the various sized gears with the rack, one end of the shaft 12 is mounted in a clevis-shapebearing 13, the ends of which project through openings 14 in a bracket 15, one of the ends being threaded to receive a nut 16 for adjusting purposes and for securing the clevis to the bracket. I

with the shaft 12 are slidably mounted there on and the movement of said gears is controlled through the medium of a lever 21, one end of which-is pivotally secured to an arm 22 of the bracket 15, while the opposite end thereof extends through a slot 23 in an upstanding plate 24 also carried by the bracket. One edge wall of the slot 23 is provided with a plurality of stepped notches 25, 26, 27 and 28 in' which the lever 21 is,

respectively seated when the gears 8, 9,10 or 11 respectively are engaged with the rack 7. The opposite edge of the slot 23 is provided with a plurality of stepped faces 29, 30, 31 and 32 which cooperate respectively with the notches 25, 26, 27 and 28, and hearing against said faces is a finger 33 of a latch 34, said latch having ears 35 which are pivotally attached to the lever 21 so as to space the latch from the lever. Positioned between the latch and lever is a spring 36, the inner end of which is provided with a coil 37 from which extend arms 38, the coil being preferably positioned adjacent the inner end of the latch and between the ears 35 while the arms project longitudinally of the lever and latch and direct outward pressure thereagainst. V

' When the lever 21 is seated in any oneof the notches and the finger 33 is engaged with any one of the stepped faces, the pres sure of the spring against the latch and lever will securely hold the lever seated within the notch, the outward swinging movement of the latch when the finger is engaged with one of the stepped portions being limited by a shoulder 39, which shoulder presses against the outer face of the plate 24. The gears 8, 9, 10 and 11 are moved longitudinally of the shaft 12 in unison by providing a collar 40 and $1 at the outer and inner ends of the series of cogs, said collars being connected together by means of a link 42, one end of the link extending through the lever 21 so that when said lever is swung laterally in either direction all of the gears will be moved in unison inwardly or outwardly.

In Figs. 4: and 5 of the drawings, I have shown a slightly modified form of boxing for the reception of the shaft 12' and in this instance ears 43 are formed on the ring member 1 between which is positioned a boxing 1-4, a bolt 45 being introduced transversely through the boxing at one edge thereof to pivotally secure the same between the ears, said boxing being preferably square in cross section to prevent lateral swinging movement thereof.

In shifting the gears longitudinally of the shaft 12, supposing the gear 11 to be in mesh with the rack 7, the latch 34 is swung on its pivot thereby disengaging the finger 33 from the stepped face 32 and moving the finger entirely out of the slot 23 when the lever 21'is lowered until it is in registration with the slot 23 and free of the notch 28 when the free end of the lever may be swung laterally to bring any one of the cogs 10, 9 or 8 into registration with the rack 7 and when the predetermined gear is brought into registration with the rack, the lever 21 is elevated until it is entered in the notch registering therewith. Pressure is then released from the latch 34;, whereupon the finger 33 will again enter the slot 23 and engage the respective stepped face in registration with the notch into which the lever has entered, thereby securely holding the lever in its adjusted position. By shifting the gears in this manner they can be operated at, any time without stopping the planter and may be changed any number of times while crossing'the field according to the nature of the soil, for increasing or decreasing the amount of grain deposited in the ground. It will likewise be seen that it will not be necessary to provide additional sprockets and chains for regulating the speed of the feed plate nor will it be necessary to disturb the driving mechanism for the shaft 12 when using the present construction. It will likewise be seen that with but a few minor changes, this device can be attached to any form of planter using a rotating feed plate having rack teeth thereon.

Having thus fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A gearing structure comprising a rack, a shaft, a plurality of different size gears rotatable with and slidably mounted on said shaft, said gears being fixed one with the other, a bracket cooperating with one end of the shaft, a clevis-shaped bearing engaging said shaft and having its ends projecting through said bracket, a nut engaging one of said ends for adjusting the bearing on the bracket, a lever pivotally attached at one end to said bracket, collars on said shaft at the opposite ends of said gears, a link connecting said collars and extending through said lever whereby when the lever is swung laterally the gears will be moved longitudinally on the shaft.

2. The combination with a shaft, a plurality of different size gears fixed together and mounted upon said shaft, and a rack adapted to cooperate with any one of said gears, of a lever, means to connect said lever to said gears for moving any one of said gears into engagement with the rack, a plate having a slot therein, one edge of the slot having a plurality of stepped notches and the opposite edge corresponding stepped faces, a latch pivoted to said lever having a finger adapted to engage any one of said stepped faces, and a spring adapted to hold the lever in engagement with the notches and the finger in engagement with said stepped faces. 7

3. The combination with a plurality of shifting gears, of a lever cooperating with said gears, a plate having a slot through which said lever extends, a latch pivoted to said lever, a finger at one end of the latch, said slot having a plurality of stepped faces at one. edge for the reception of said finger and a plurality of notches at the opposite edge for the reception of said lever, a shoulder on the latch adapted to limit the swinging movement of the latch in one direction, and a spring between the lever and latch for holding the latch in operative position.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

IRA LEWIS PACKARD. Witnesses:

P. H. HYBSKMANN, L. F. SMITH.

copies 01 th! patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommiuioner of ratentl,

. Washington, D. 0." 

